When I bought Mystic Spirit Voices, there was a sticker afixed to it that said "Pink Floyd meets Enigma." That's accurate enough. Jens Gad has contributed guitar tracks to Enigma albums, and there are other examples in the genre, but this solo guitar style is unusual in Nu Ambient. Vivere(4) is a fine example of the "Pink Floyd Factor."

Fundamentum(3) really demonstrates the power of a male choir, in a way that Gregorian Chant doesn't. The underlying sound is representative of the rest of the album, and of Lesiëm in general. Melodies are often shared by varied soloists, but the 12-member choir is always present, supported by strong rhythms and lush synthesizers. The songs on Mystic Spirit Voices have enough common ground to form a consistent whole, yet enough variety that I feel compelled to mention a number of them individually.

Miracle Eyes(8) is a perfect example of the angelic female vocal solos scattered throughout the album. This is standard Nu Ambient fare, but its sparing use makes it very effective. Indalo(6) offers the very different, but just as beautiful vocal style of Lawrence Sihlabeni, in what I can only guess is an African language. Floreat(11) is probably the most unusual song of the album - in place of sung vocals is a spoken story from the perspective a medieval protagonist (I think...). Its a bit dark, but interesting.

This album is hard to top - I think they might have done it with their second album, though. Both should be high on your "to buy" list.

The guitars have moved a bit further into the background, but the sound established in Mystic Spirit Voices is essentially unchanged. I, for one, am happy about that. Of course, if one of these two albums bores you, the other will probably do the same.

There is a bit more variety among the soloists on Illumination - all the tracks include the choir, but more of them involve something a little bit different. Africa(7) is my favorite song off this album, and features the same style of vocals as Indalo from Mystic Spirit Voices. The male soloist on La Rose(9) provides justification for the reputation of French as a beautiful language. Navigator(3) offers something very different - a refrain with Klingon lyrics. Not only will this delight Trekkies, but they're subtly mixed in, and sound good alongside the accompanying vocoder.

Illumnation does have its bad moments. I'm don't really care for the soloist in Britannia(8), but my real complaint is with Diva(11), which features a blatant attempt to rip off Michael Cretu's (he of Enigma) vocal style. I have no idea what would posess a producer to do this; Cretu has a unique voice, not a good voice. This cheapens the album a little bit for me.

In total, Illumnation's faults are miniscule in comparison to what it has to offer. I can't decide whether I prefer Mystic Spirit Voices to Illumination, but I know I'm very fond of them both.

For a while, I was dissapointed by Auracle. Recently, I have decided it simply gets off to a slow start. The first half of the album is dominated by solos from Maggie Reilly and returning contributor Diana Lasch (who sang Roma on Illumination, and possibly Liberta on Mystic Spirit Voices - the liner notes credit "Tanja Lasch and Diana Pabst"). While I do feel that Reilly's voice is a bit frail (her vibrato is more of a warble at times), Lasch's Fortitudo(12) is one of the best songs on the album. My real complaint is that the repetition of one female fronted pop-song after another makes the first half of the album seem like an inferior Delerium or Balligomingo.

Had Auracle started around Patentia(6) or Spes(7), I would have been much more impressed. Prudentia(8) beings to warm things up with an cinematic, orchestral arrangement. If I correctly interpret Auracle's liner notes, Alex Wende himself sings the "Fantasy Lyrics" he is credited with writing on Times(9), heralding the album's true return to form. Invidia(10) (Latin for "Envy"), voiced by Tom Cunningham, is as out-of-place, dark, and intriguing as was Floreat on Mystic Spirit Voices.

Auracle's production is a bit more polished than the previous albums', but feels a bit sterile at times. In particular, Pivo Dienert's guitars sound wedged into these arrangments, where they fit seamlessely into Mystic Spirit Voices. Among the positive changes in Auracle is the addition of women to the choir, further removing Lesiëm from the Gregorian sound and the shadow of Enigma.

Perhaps the stage production of Auracle (visit the links in the bio up top if you're intrigued) casts Lesiëm's evolution in a better light. For my money, I would have preferred a seven or eight song MCD to this full-length release.